Thumbnail photo by Paul Critz
District 2 Supervisor Valerie Starkey was absent. Among the items discussed at Tuesday’s Del Norte County Board of Supervisors meeting:
Emergency shelter: Supervisors approved a budget transfer of nearly $2.9 million to build the 60-bed emergency shelter that’s part of a larger project to address homelessness in Del Norte County.
The funding, which comes from a $10 million Encampment Resolution Funding grant Del Norte received in 2023, will allow Adams Commercial General Contracting Inc. to start building the shelter. The 6,700 square-foot emergency shelter and a 50-unit micro village, along with restroom and commercial kitchen structures will be housed on county property on Williams Drive. This joint venture, which includes wraparound services and case management, is being spearheaded by the county Department of Health and Human Services and Del Norte Mission Possible. Individuals could begin occupying the emergency shelter and the micro village by September, according to DHHS Director Ranell Brown.
Police Academy Sponsorships: Supervisors authorized a $30,000 budget transfer to the Del Norte County Sheriff’s Office to sponsor two new recruits through the POST Academy at the College of the Siskiyous in Yreka.
According to his staff report, sponsoring two new deputies through the police academy is part of Del Norte County Sheriff Garrett Scott’s efforts to fill vacant positions within his office. This budget transfer comes after county supervisors in October approved Scott’s plan to increase salaries for new and existing employees by freezing or eliminating positions that have been vacant for more than a decade.
In his staff report, Scott said he hoped that once the two new deputies graduate, they’ll be out on the street to provide services by July.
Assembly Bill 993: Supervisors authorized a letter of support for an assembly bill that would allow Del Norte County to be reimbursed for its efforts in managing hazardous materials in the community.
Authored by California District 1 Assemblywoman Heather Hadwick, AB 993 would make every county with a population of less than 150,000 eligible to take part in the state’s Rural Certified Unified Program Agency Reimbursement program.
Overseen by the state Secretary of Environmental Protection, Certified Unified Program Agencies oversee hazardous material permitting, business plans and storage tanks. Currently, rural counties whose CUPAs were certified after Jan. 1, 2000 were eligible to be reimbursed up to $60,000 for implementing their programs.
Hadwick’s bill would extend that eligibility to rural counties whose CUPAs predate Jan. 1, 2000 and would increase that eligibility cap to $150,000.
In its letter, the Del Norte County Board of Supervisors stated that AB 993 aligned with its legislative platform, which emphasizes equitable state and federal funding for implementing mandated programs. Supervisors also supported AB 993’s ability to enhance its ability to manage hazardous materials.
